> download the April 2013 edition of the Public Sphere newsletter (PDF, 331KB)
Breakfast: Toast with a smidgen of beloved marmite (postnationwide drought), a hearty bowl of porridge or a quick gulp of cereal—even if we don’t always, we all know the old saying of breakfast being the most important meal of the day.
The familiar mid-morning hunger pang at work or school is even more distracting if you have accidently skipped your morning meal.
But for thousands of New Zealand children, this diverting hunger is a regular and significant reality—many around the country go to school without a proper breakfast or lunch. Research has shown that hungry children at school face major barriers to their learning and social progress and development.
This is another facet and perpetuation of the poverty many children in New Zealand face today: an estimated 25% of our children live in poverty, a comparison that ranks us dismally against other OECD and developed nations.